Southern California weekend
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Long Beach day trip
Retro Row Why go now: Shop alongside Hollywood costumers and set designers in this vintagelover’s hot spot. Where the action is: East Fourth St. between Hermosa and Junipero Avenues. Number of vintage shops: More than a dozen. 1940s–1960s frocks and furniture: Hit the Vintage Collective
(2122 E. Fourth; 562/433-8699) for chic threads, mod Danish furniture, and kitschy accessories like ’50s cocktail shakers. ’70s-style street party: Rollerskate fashion shows, street musicians, and literary events spice up Fourth Street the last Saturday of each month (free; next event Mar 28; 4thstreetlong beach.com). ’80s duds: La Bomba (2222 E. Fourth; 562/4339112) will take you back (think Pat Benatar–style suede boots). Bargain tip: Visit on the third weekend of the month for Style in the Pile (next event Mar 21–22), when mountains of vintage garments go for $5 or less. Shopping break: Refuel at Number Nine ($; 2118 E. Fourth; 562/434-2009) with a bowl of Vietnamese noodles and a soju mojito.
1. Go mod Devoted collectors will drool over the midcentury eye candy at Xcape, with items like Sputnik Lightolier chandeliers and restored vintage Brown Jordan patio furniture. Recently spotted: a rare Paul McCobb tobacco-teak-and-bronze room divider (once rented for a Mad Men Palm Springs set) and a Lei Around for tiki-style lounging. 2236 E. Fourth St.; xcapelongbeach.com
By Chantal Lamers | photographs by andrea gomez Explore more on page 22 »
Sunset March 2009
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Southern California Day trip
3. Hit a diner Punk-rock drummer Chris Reece restored a rundown ’50s diner into a neighborhood fish house and decked it out with his own collection of seaworthy antiques and Long Beach historic photography. Now Pike Restaurant & Bar is the place for shoulder-toshoulder communal beer drinking and gorging on lobster tacos. $; 1836 E. Fourth St.; 562/437-4453.
2. Dress the part Find reconditioned cashmere sweaters for less than $50, felt hats, and Risky Business–era Ray-Bans at Meow. Even the decor is retro, with salvaged display fixtures from Long Beach icons like Steak-O-Rama. Much of the inventory is plucked from closing department stores, so items are in great condition. 2210 E. Fourth St.; 562/438-8990.
Take it home
710
Cherry Ave.
Getting there
405
Pacific Coast Hwy.
Long Beach
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Seventh St. Fourth St. 0
From I-405/San Diego Fwy., head south on Cherry Ave. and turn onto Fourth St. INFO 4thstreetlong beach.com
1 mi
4. Visit a throwback theater The Art Theatre is the longest-running single-screen theater in Southern California. The wine bar next door, Art Du Vin, has wines based on the movies and is an intimate spot for a post-flick debrief. $10; 2025 E. Fourth St.; arttheatrelongbeach.com
The owners of Open hand-select the used inventory to cater to the arty leftist counterculture. Pore through sections like “Short Attention Span Fiction” or back issues of architectural-design magazines. You might even find a first edition of Fast Times at Ridgemont High by Cameron Crowe. 2226 E. Fourth St.; thestoryofopen.com
3 more hot spots for vintage LONG BEACH About 800 vendors pack 20 acres at Veterans Stadium for the Long Beach Outdoor Antique & Collectible Market ($5–$10; 5:30–3 on third Sun of each month, next event Mar 15; 5000 E. Lew Davis St.; longbeachantiquemarket.com). Make a beeline for Olde Good Things for baker’s racks as well as salvaged ceiling tiles and knobs.
PASADENA Legendary for celebrity sightings, the Rose Bowl Flea Market ($8–$20; 5–4:30 on second Sun of each month, next event Mar 8; 1001 Rose Bowl Dr.; rgcshows.com) boasts 2,500 vendors split into sections for vintage clothing, decor, and new wares. Allyn Scura’s collection of unused retro eyeglass frames (like fabulous old Dior shades) is worth a stop.
SANTA MONICA Bring your dog to the Santa Monica Airport Outdoor Antique & Collectible Market ($4–$7; first and fourth Sun of each month, next events Mar 1 and 22; 3050 Airport Ave.; santamonica airportantiquemarket.com). For a ’60s-era glow, seek out Mickey Goldin’s vintage lighting: Wrought-iron, crystal, and brass chandeliers are refurbished from broken parts and rewired.
Share your weekend finds. Favorite new restaurant? Local hike? Email your suggestions to the weekend guide editor atwgeditor@sunset.com 22
Sunset March 2009